July 12, 1895.] 



SCIENCE. 



45 



ing the points of greatest and least pres- 

 sure, but always obliquely to the isobaro- 

 metric lines, and usuallj^ with a circular 

 movement round the points of highest and 

 lowest pressure. When from any cause 

 the equilibrium of the atmosphere was 

 broken down, circular movements of enor- 

 mous force, such as tornadoes and cj^clones, 

 were set up. The lecture concluded with 

 the exhibition of an artificial waterspout. 



LIGHTNING IN THE UNITED STATES. 



The U. S. Department of Agriculture has 

 issued a bulletin on Protection from Lightning 

 by Mr. Alexander McAidie, which gives 

 some interesting statistics concerning the 

 prevalence of injury from lightning in the 

 United States. 



In 1891 the "Weather Bureau issued to its 

 observers instructions to repoi't at the end 

 of every month the names, with corrobora- 

 tive dates and places, of all persons killed 

 by violent wind storms, tornadoes and light- 

 ning, as also damage to property. 



There were reported in 1891, 204 persons 

 killed; in 1892, 251; in 1893, 209, and in 

 1894, 336. In addition to those killed dur- 

 ing 1894, 351 persons were severely injured. 

 The injury to property during the year was 

 as follows : 268 barns struck with a dam- 

 age of $407,500 ; 55 churches struck, damage 

 unknown ; 261 dwellings and several oil 

 tanks, factories and elevators, the damage 

 amounting to not less than $351,000. 



The report strongly recommends the use 

 of lightning conductors in thinly settled 

 districts, but does not give statistics con- 

 cerning the relative amount of protection 

 supplied by them. 



GENERAL. 



Daniel Cady Eaton, professor of botany 

 in Yale University, died on June 29th at 

 the age of sixty yeai's. 



There will be held at Paris in 1896 an 

 International Congress of Applied Chemistry. 



The committee of organization met at Paris 

 on June 4th to make preliminary arrange- 

 ments, and decided on the ten sections in 

 which the Congress should meet. 



The Division of Ornithologj^ and Mam- 

 malogy, Department of Agriculture, has in 

 press a Bulletin \)j Professor Beal on the 

 Food of Woodpeckers, an abstract of which 

 was recently given in Science. Mr. F. A. 

 Lucas has contributed a short chapter on 

 the tongues of woodpeckers, and the rela- 

 tion between the character of the tongue 

 and the nature of the food. He concludes 

 that modifications of the tongue, at least 

 external modifications, are directly due to 

 peculiarities of food or feeding, and are not 

 of taxonomic value. 



The removal of Professor George David- 

 son, head of the Coast and Geodetic Survey 

 on the Pacific Coast, is severely ci'iticised. 

 Telegrams have been sent protesting against 

 this action from Senators Perkins, White 

 and Allison, and from manj- others. The 

 ofl&cers of the Lick Observatorj^ sent the 

 following dispatch : 



Lick Obseevatoky, July 2d. 

 To President of the United States, Washington: 



The undersigned, astronomers of the Lick Observa- 

 tory, respectfully call your attention to an act of great 

 injustice done to one of the most active and efficient 

 of our Government employees, Professor George 

 Davidson, for many years connected with the United 

 States Coast Survey, who has been removed from his 

 position. Eecently published scientific records dem- 

 onstrate that he is still one of the most active workers 

 in the Survey. It would be an act of simple justice 

 to reinstate him. We earnestly request you to cause 

 this to be done. Eespectfully, 



E. S. HOLDEN, 



J. M. SCHAEBEELE, 



E. E. Barnard, 

 W. W. Campbell. 



Mr. George S. Davis has decided to dis- 

 continue the publication of The Index Medi- 

 cus. In a circular letter to the subscribers 

 he states that since 1885 the loss has been 

 between $500 and $1,000 annually, and 

 that it would probably amount to $2,000 in 



